Systems and methods for using marking information to electronically display dispensing of markers by a marking system or marking tool

ABSTRACT

Marking information relating to the use of a marking system or a marking tool configured to dispense one or more markers to mark, on ground, pavement, or other surface, a location of an underground utility, is used to control a display device so as to visually display a dispensing of the one or more markers on an electronic representation of an area that is marked and includes the location of the underground utility.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The application claims the benefit, under 35 U.S.C. §120, as acontinuation (CON) of U.S. Non-provisional application Ser. No.11/696,606 filed Apr. 4, 2007, entitled “Marking System and Method,”which application is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Underground man-made objects, such as utility lines and pipes(hereinafter “utility lines”), are very susceptible to damage fromexcavation activities. Local and federal laws require that notificationbe given to owners of underground utility lines in an area to beexcavated before any excavation takes place. The owners of the utilitylines typically must locate and mark the location of any undergroundutility lines.

The tasks of locating and marking underground utility lines can beperformed by either the utility line owner or by third partycontractors. A marking tool is typically used to mark the ground,pavement or other surfaces in order to provide a visual indication ofthe location of underground utilities. Paint is commonly used as themarker, and it is typically applied using a paint marking tool. Thecolor of the paint is typically chosen based on the type of utility linebeing marked (e.g., red for a power line). However, other types ofmarkers, such as other types of liquids, flags and stakes are also used,and different visual or other characteristics of the marker are used forrepresenting different types of underground utility lines. For example,the color, shape or other characteristic of a flag marker can representa particular type of underground utility line (e.g., a square shapedflag can be used to mark a power line).

When paint is used as the marker, a worker marks the location of anunderground utility line using a paint marking tool to spray paint onthe ground above the utility line. The paint marking tools typicallyused have a paint canister holder that is adapted to hold a singleaerosol can of paint in an axial orientation with respect to the longaxis of the aerosol can. The paint marking tool is typically designed toenable a user to walk or stand erect while dispensing the paint.

When an underground utility line is located, the worker will load apaint can of the appropriate color for the utility line being markedinto the paint marking tool. When it is time to mark a different type ofutility line, the worker must change the paint can to one of theappropriate color for the new utility line being marked.

SUMMARY

According to one aspect, a marking system may include a marker dispenserto hold and dispense a marker; a processor to determine at least onecharacteristic regarding the marker; and a triggering system incommunication with the marker dispenser and the processor to trigger themarker dispenser to dispense the marker and the processor to store theat least one characteristic regarding the marker and time dataassociated with the dispensing of the marker.

According to another aspect, a marking tool may include a markerdispenser to hold and dispense a marker from a marker container. A tagmay be affixed to the marker container, where the tag may storeinformation regarding at least one characteristic of the marker. Themarking tool may further include a tag reader to read the informationfrom the tag, a processor to receive the information from the tagreader, and a triggering system to trigger the marker dispenser todispense the marker from the marker container and the processor to storethe information and time data associated with the dispensing of themarker by the marker dispenser.

According to yet another aspect, a method may include identifying amarker characteristic regarding a marker loaded into a marking tool;receiving activation of a trigger of the marking tool; dispensing themarker when the activation of the trigger is received; and storing themarker characteristic and time data when the activation of the triggeris received.

According to a further aspect, a system may include means for holding acontainer from which a marker is dispensed; means for identifying amarker characteristic regarding the marker in the container; means forreceiving activation of a trigger; means for dispensing the marker fromthe container when the trigger is activated; and means for storing themarker characteristic and a timestamp when the trigger is activated.

According to another aspect, a system may include means for holding acontainer from which a marker is dispensed; means for identifying amarker characteristic regarding the marker in the container; means forreceiving activation of a trigger; means for dispensing the marker fromthe container when the trigger is activated; and means for increasing acount value when the trigger is activated.

According to yet another aspect, a marking system may include means forproviding a holder for a container from which a marker is dispensed; andmeans for identifying a marker characteristic regarding the marker inthe container only when the container is initially placed into theholder.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate one or more embodiments describedherein and, together with the description, explain these embodiments. Inthe drawings:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary marking system;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an exemplary marking tool;

FIG. 3 is a diagram of an exemplary triggering system that may be usedin the marking tool of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of another exemplary marking tool;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an exemplary process for marking an area; and

FIGS. 6A-6C are diagrams of exemplary entries that can created.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.The same reference numbers in different drawings may identify the sameor similar elements. Also, the following detailed description does notlimit the invention.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary marking system 100. The system100 may include a communication system 110, an interface 120, a localmemory 130, a processor 140, a marker dispenser 150, a triggering system160 and a tag reader 170. In other implementations, system 100 mayinclude additional or different components.

The system 100 may be used to dispense markers. In one exemplaryapplication of the system 100, the markers may be used to markunderground utility lines, such as telecommunications (e.g., telephoneand/or cable), power, gas, water, or sewer. The marker that is used tomark underground utility lines may include a liquid, such as paint, orobjects, such as flags, stakes, etc.

A user may control the operation of the system 100 via interface 120. Inone implementation, interface 120 may include a touch screen interfacethat can provide various operational controls and status indicators ofthe system 100, and can allow the user to navigate the controls bytouching particular areas of the screen. In another implementation, theinterface 120 may include another form of input and/or output, such as,for example, a display for displaying information and a keypad forentering information. In either situation, the interface 120 may provideoperational controls to function as the triggering system 160.

The triggering system 160 may trigger the dispensing of markers and thestoring of marking information. The marking information, which will bedescribed in more detail below, may include information regarding acharacteristic of the marker(s) being dispensed, time data (e.g., atimestamp and/or elapsed time information), and/or count data (e.g., anumber of times that markers were dispensed). In operation, a user mayengage a triggering mechanism in the triggering system 160 (explained inmore detail below) in order to dispense the markers. When the triggeringmechanism is engaged, the triggering system 160 may also initiatestoring of the marking information. This may be done by sending a signalto the processor 140, which may cause processor 140 to store the markinginformation in local memory 130. Alternatively, or additionally, theprocessor 140 may store the marking information by transmitting themarking information for storage by a device or system external to system100. In one implementation, marking information may be stored only whena marker is being dispensed by the marker dispenser 150.

The marker dispenser 150 may hold the markers and may also contain anactuation mechanism (not shown in FIG. 1) that causes the markers to bedispensed when the triggering system 160 is activated. As describedabove, the markers dispensed by the marker dispenser 150 may include aliquid (e.g., paint) or an object (e.g., flags or stakes). Details ofthe marker dispenser 150 will be discussed in more detail below.

The system 100 may also include a tag reader 170. In one implementation,tag reader 170 may include a device that can read tags. A “tag,” as theterm is used herein, may refer to any item that is capable of storingmachine-readable information, such as a barcode, a radio frequencyidentification (RFID) device, or a near field communication (NFC)device. A tag may be passive, active, or any combination thereof. Apassive tag may transmit data in response to signals received from tagreader 170. An active tag may continuously transmit data. Tags can beattached to the markers that are loaded into the marker dispenser 150and can incorporate data that corresponds to one or more characteristicsof the marker (e.g., paint color if the marker is paint). Other examplesof marker characteristics include, but are not limited to, the type ofmarker and a shape of marker. The tag reader 170 may incorporate anantenna (not shown) to read the data from a tag (whether passive,active, or any combination thereof). The data read by the tag reader 170can then be sent to the processor 140 for a determination of thecorresponding characteristic. The corresponding characteristic can thenbe stored in local memory 130, displayed by the interface 120, and/ortransmitted external to system 100.

Communication system 110 may include an interface for transmitting datato and/or receiving data from one or more external devices and/orsystems located either local to or remote from the system 100.Communication system 110 may include any type of interface, such as aninterface for communicating via Ethernet, Bluetooth, Wifi, radiofrequency (RF), a wide area network (WAN), or another type of network orprotocol.

In one implementation, communication system 110 may send markinginformation stored in local memory 130 to an external device/systemand/or receive information from an external device/system. The markinginformation may be used by the external device/system to identify amarker dispensed by a user of system 100, identify a time at which themarker was dispensed, and/or determine an amount of the marker used at aparticular location.

System 100, as broadly described herein, may be particularly suited forincorporation into marking tools for marking underground utilities. Asdiscussed above, a marking tool is used to mark the ground, pavement orother surfaces in order to provide a visual indication of the locationof underground utilities. The type of marker that may be used includespaint that may be supplied in aerosol canisters that are orientedaxially with respect to the long axis of the aerosol canisters. Themarking tool enables a user to walk or stand erect while dispensing themarkers.

If system 100 is incorporated into a paint marking tool, a tag may beattached to the paint canisters to identify a characteristic of thepaint, such as the color of the paint in the paint canister. The tagreader 170 can read this paint characteristic (e.g., the colorinformation) from the tag when the paint canister is inserted into themarker dispenser 150, and the processor 140 can display the colorinformation read by the tag reader 170 on the interface 120.Alternatively, or additionally, the color information may be provided tothe user in other ways. For example, the color information may beaudibly provided to the user (e.g., via a generated voice or a series ofbeeps or honks). The color information may also, or alternatively, beprovided to the user visually in a manner other than via interface 120.For example, the color information may be provided on an object worn orcarried by the user (e.g., a pair of glasses, a bracelet, a ring, etc.having display capabilities and/or being capable of changing color).

In one implementation, the processor 140 can estimate how much paint ofa particular color has been dispensed. The processor 140 could do thisby maintaining a separate timer for each color. The timer for aparticular color would increase its count every time the triggeringmechanism is activated and that color is mounted in the marker dispenser150 (which can be determined by reading the tag on the paint canisterusing the tag reader 170). This information can be useful for managingpaint inventory or determining whether the amount of paint used at aparticular location is reasonable given the job to be performed at thatlocation.

A paint marking tool is just one possible application of system 100.System 100 can be applied to any marking system that uses markers thatcan be affixed with tags. Any marker characteristic that a user wouldfind useful can be stored on the tag that is affixed to the marker.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an exemplary marking tool 200. For thedescription to follow, assume that the marking tool 200 uses paint asthe marker. However, it should be appreciated that any other marker,such as another type of liquid, flags, stakes, etc., may be used inother implementations.

The marking tool 200 may include a housing 220 with an elongated centerhousing portion 240, a top housing portion 260 and a bottom housingportion 280. The housing 220 may be formed of any at least semi-rigidmaterial, and may be formed of a lightweight material such as aluminumor plastic.

A paint canister holder 282 may be attached to the bottom housingportion 280. The paint canister holder 282 may include an open-endedtubular structure that is attached to the bottom housing portion 280 byany suitable attachment mechanisms, such as rivets, adhesive, mechanicalfasteners or the like. The paint canister holder 282 may be formed ofany material such as injection-molded plastic, formed sheet metal or anyother appropriate material that may be fabricated into an open tubularconfiguration or any other configuration that will serve to support apaint canister 284 with the paint canister axis substantially parallelto the housing 220.

A tag reader 246, which may include a device that can read tags, may bemounted on or located within the housing 220. The tag reader 246 mayincorporate an antenna (not shown) that is capable of reading data froma tag. When a tag 286 is attached to a paint canister 284 thatincorporates data that corresponds to characteristics of the paint(e.g., paint color), the tag reader 246 may read that data. Otherexamples of marker characteristics include, but are not limited to, thetype of marker and the shape of marker. The data read by the tag reader246 can then be sent to a processor 268 for a determination of thecorresponding characteristic. The corresponding characteristic can thenbe provided to the user, stored in local memory 270, and/or transmittedexternal to marking tool 200.

The tag reader 246 may be mounted anywhere on the housing or on thepaint canister holder 282. However, the tag reader 246 does not have tobe mounted anywhere on the marking tool 200 itself. For example, the tagreader 246 may be carried by a user. In general, the tag reader 246 maybe mounted or located at any location, as long as it can receive datatransmitted from the tag 286.

An actuation mechanism 288 may be attached to the bottom housing portion280 at a location from which it can actuate the nozzle 290 of the paintcanister 284. The actuation mechanism 288 may include a rigid materialthat depresses the nozzle 290 when actuated. However, any mechanism maybe used to actuate the nozzle 290 of the paint canister 284.

A handle 262 may be provided at the top housing portion 260. The handle262 may be formed of injection-molded plastic or any other appropriatematerial, and may be attached to the top housing portion 260 by rivets,adhesive, or any other suitable means. A mechanical trigger 264 may beprovided on the top housing portion 260. The mechanical trigger 264 maybe located on the handle 262 and attached using any suitable means.

The display 266 may be provided on the top housing portion 260. Thedisplay 266 may include a touch-screen display for displayinginformation to a user, as well as acting as an input device. Theprocessor 268 and the local memory 270 are located in the housing 220.In one implementation, the processor 268 and local memory 270 may belocated in the top housing portion 260 so as to be in close proximity tothe display 266 and mechanical trigger 264. In another implementation,the processor 268 and local memory 270 may be located elsewhere withinthe housing 220.

A timer 272 may be provided on the top housing portion 260. The timer272 may include any device that can output time data to some level ofaccuracy (e.g., accuracy to the minute, the second, the millisecond,etc.). In one implementation, the timer 272 may be capable of generatingthe time data itself. In this situation, the timer 272 may take the formof a clock. In another implementation, the timer 272 may receive thetime data from another device external to marking tool 200. In thissituation, the timer 272 may take the form of a receiver. In somesituations, it may be beneficial for the timer 272 to be synchronized toanother timer. The timer 272 may output time data to the processor 268.

A wireless communication antenna 242 may be located on the housing 220,and used to transmit data, such as marking information stored in localmemory 270, to an external device/system and/or to receive informationfrom an external device/system.

The marking tool 200 may also include one or more input/output ports244, such as USB, SCSI, Firewire, Ethernet and/or other ports, forinterfacing with other equipment and/or computers.

In operation, a user operates the marking tool 200 while standing orwalking in an upright manner. A user may control the operation of thetool 200 via display 266, a mechanical trigger 264, and/or a wireless orwired (hereinafter “wireless/wired”) interface that may be provided viawireless communication antenna 242 and/or input/output ports 244.

The various operational controls and status indicators of the tool 200are displayed on display 266, and the user can also navigate thecontrols by touching particular areas of the display 266. Although atouch-screen display is one form of the display 266, any other type ofdisplay or interface may be used such as, for example, a display fordisplaying information and a keypad for entering information. The usermay use the display 266 to trigger the dispensing of paint and thestoring of marking information.

The mechanical trigger 264 may trigger the dispensing of paint and thestoring of marking information. In one implementation, the tool 200 maystore the marking information only when paint is being dispensed. Thismay be accomplished by using a mechanical trigger 264 that, whenactivated by the user, triggers both the actuation mechanism 288 for thepaint canister 284 and the storing of the marking information by theprocessor 268.

The mechanical trigger 264 can trigger the actuation mechanism 288 via amechanical connection between the trigger 264 and the actuationmechanism 288. For example, the actuation mechanism 288 can be a rigidmaterial that is connected to the mechanical trigger 264 via amechanical linkage (not shown), in which case depressing the mechanicaltrigger 264 may cause the actuation mechanism to apply pressure to thenozzle 290 of the paint canister 284. However, the mechanical trigger264 may also, or alternatively, trigger the actuation mechanism 288 viaan electronic connection. The electronic connection may be a hardwiredconnection or a wireless connection. If the connection between themechanical trigger 264 and the actuation mechanism 288 is an electronicconnection, the actuation mechanism 288 may include a mechanism forgenerating the force necessary to depress the nozzle 290 of the paintcanister 284.

The wireless/wired interface may be capable of capturing signals thatreflect a user's intent. For example, the wireless/wired interface mayinclude a microphone that can capture a user's intent by capturing theuser's audible commands. Alternatively, the wireless/wired interface mayinteract with a device that monitors a condition of the user, such aseye movement, brain activity, or heart rate. In either event, thewireless/wired interface may generate signals that may be sent to theprocessor 268 for processing. The processor 268 may use the signals totrigger the dispensing of paint and the storing of marking information.

FIG. 3 is a diagram of one embodiment of a triggering system 300 thatmay be used in the marking tool 200 of FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 3, thetriggering system 300 may include the mechanical trigger 264, awireless/wired trigger 320, and/or a touch screen display 266, themechanical actuation device 288, and a signal generator 310.

In operation, a user may trigger the storing of the marking informationand the dispensing of paint by activating the mechanical trigger 264.The storing of the marking information and the dispensing of paint mayalso, or alternatively, be triggered by a trigger signal fromwireless/wired trigger 320 or by choosing a command that is displayed onthe touch screen display 266. It should be appreciated that triggeringsystem 300 may include a mechanical trigger 264, a trigger signal fromwireless/wired trigger 320, a trigger command on a touch screen display266, or a combination of a mechanical trigger 264, a trigger signal fromwireless/wired trigger 320, and/or a trigger command on a touch screendisplay 266 for initiating the storing of the marking information andthe dispensing of paint.

When a user activates the mechanical trigger 264, the mechanicalactuation device 288 and the signal generator 310 are both activated.The mechanical actuation device 288 actuates the nozzle 290 of the paintcanister 284, thus dispensing paint out of the paint canister 284. Thesignal generator 310, when activated, sends a signal to the processor268 indicating that the mechanical trigger is being activated. Asdiscussed above, this signal could be used to trigger the storing ofmarking information and/or a timer for keeping track of how much paintof a particular color has been dispensed when a tag 286 that identifiesthe paint color is attached to the paint canister 284 that is mounted inthe paint canister holder 282.

The mechanical trigger 264 can activate the mechanical actuation device288 via a mechanical connection, e.g., a mechanical linkage, between themechanical trigger 264 and the mechanical actuation device 288.Alternatively, the mechanical trigger 264 can activate the mechanicalactuation device 288 via a wired or wireless electronic connectionbetween the mechanical trigger 264 and the mechanical actuation device288.

If a trigger signal from wireless/wired trigger 320 is used by the userto initiate marking information storing and paint dispersal, thewireless/wired trigger 320 may send a signal to both the mechanicalactuation device 288 and the processor 268. The signal sent to themechanical actuation device 288 by the wireless/wired trigger 320 mayresult in the actuation of the nozzle 290 of the paint canister 284 bythe mechanical actuation device 288. The signal sent to the processor268 by the wireless/wired trigger 320 may trigger the storing of themarking information. The signals sent by the wireless/wired trigger 320to the mechanical actuation device 288 and the processor 268 may be sentvia a wired or wireless connection.

If a command on the touch screen display 266 is used by the user toinitiate storing of marking information and paint dispersal, the touchscreen display 266 can send a signal to both the mechanical actuationdevice 288 and the processor 268. The signal sent to the mechanicalactuation device 288 by the touch screen display 266 may result in theactuation of the nozzle 290 of the paint canister 284 by the mechanicalactuation device 288. The signal sent to the processor 268 by the touchscreen display 266 may trigger the storing of the marking information.The signals sent by the touch screen display 266 to the mechanicalactuation device 288 and the processor 268 may be sent via a wired orwireless connection.

The marking information may be used by an external device and/or systemto identify which markers were dispensed, when the markers weredispensed, and/or an amount of markers that were dispensed. The markinginformation may be useful to determine whether a user dispensed thecorrect marker(s) (e.g., the correct color paint) in a particularlocation. Also, the marking information may be used to visually depict(e.g., in real time as the dispensing occurs) or reconstruct (e.g., at alater time after the dispensing is complete) the dispensing of themarkers on an electronic representation of the area that is currentlybeing marked or was previously marked. Also, the marking information maybe used to determine whether the job was completed correctly (e.g., thatthe amount of paint dispensed at the location was reasonable given thejob that was to be performed at the location).

As shown in FIG. 4, the marking system 100 may be incorporated intoalready existing marking tools by locating the electronics on a board410 that can be mounted onto an existing marking tool 400. The processor268, local memory 270, input/output ports 244, tag reader 246 and/orwireless communication antenna 242 may be mounted on the board 410. Theboard 410 can be attached to the marking tool 400 using any means, suchas with fasteners, clamps, glue, etc.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an exemplary process for marking an area. Theprocess of FIG. 5 may begin with a user of a marking tool, such asmarking tool 200 (FIG. 2), being dispatched to a location to be marked.The user might be given a ticket that identifies what utilities the userneeds to mark at the location. The ticket might specify, for example,the location to be marked, the day and/or time that the location is tobe marked, and/or whether the user is to mark the location fortelecommunications (e.g., telephone and/or cable), power, gas, water,and/or sewer. The user might arrive at the location and take his/hermarking tool out of his/her vehicle. In some situations, the user mightload his/her pockets with extra markers (e.g., extra canisters of thesame color of paint or different colors of paint).

A marker may be loaded into the marking tool (block 510). For example,the user may load a paint canister 284 of the appropriate color intopaint canister holder 282. If the user is going to mark power, forexample, the user might load a paint canister 284 containing red paint.The paint canister 284 may be loaded such that nozzle 290 extends out ofthe bottom of the marking tool 200, as illustrated in FIG. 2.

In one implementation, as described above, a tag 286 may be affixed tothe paint canister 284. The tag 286 may store information regarding oneor more characteristics of the marker. For example, the tag 286 mayidentify the type of marker (e.g., paint, flag, stake, etc.), the colorof marker (e.g., orange, red, yellow, blue, or green), and/or the shapeof the marker (e.g., square, triangular, circular, etc.).

The marker characteristic(s) may be identified (block 520). In oneimplementation, the marker characteristic(s) may be automaticallydetermined. For example, data from the tag 286 may be read by tag reader246 and sent to processor 268. The processor 268 may determine themarker characteristic(s) from this data, and cause information regardingthe marker characteristic(s) to be presented to the user (e.g., visuallyand/or audibly).

For example, a user interface may identify a characteristic of themarker. The user interface may optionally request the user to confirmthat the user intended to load a marker with the identifiedcharacteristic. The confirmation may establish that the user actuallylooked at the user interface before performing any marking operation. Inone implementation, the user may be unable to activate a trigger fordispensing a marker if the user does not confirm that the correct markeris loaded.

In another implementation, the marker characteristic(s) may be manuallydetermined. For example, the user may specify the markercharacteristic(s) via a user interface. The user interface may identifya number of possible characteristics (e.g., paint colors) of the marker.In this case, the user interface may request that that user select thepaint color to be dispensed. The user interface may also identify theutility that corresponds to each of the possible paint colors so thatthe user can confirm that the correct marker is loaded.

Trigger activation may be received (block 530). For example, the usermay effect trigger activation by applying pressure to the mechanicaltrigger 264 with his/her hand. Alternatively, or additionally, the usermay effect trigger activation by, for example, speaking a particularcommand to cause a trigger signal to be output by wireless/wired trigger320. Alternatively, or additionally, the user may effect triggeractivation by touching a particular area of display 266 to cause atrigger command to be output by display 266.

It may optionally be determined whether to permit trigger activation(block 540). For example, the user may be required to confirm that amarker with the correct marker characteristic was loaded before triggeractivation may be permitted. Alternatively, the marking tool 200 may beloaded with information from the user's ticket. In this case, triggeractivation may be prevented when the marker characteristic of the markerdoes not match the ticket information. For example, if the ticketinformation indicates that the user is to dispense blue and yellow paintat a particular location, then activation of the trigger may bepermitted if blue or yellow paint is loaded into the marking tool 200,and activation of the trigger may be prevented otherwise.

If activation of the trigger is permitted, then a marker may bedispensed (block 550), and marking information may be stored (block560). To dispense a marker (block 550), the actuation device 288 may beactivated to cause the nozzle 290 of the paint canister 284 to bedepressed, which may cause paint from the paint canister 284 to beoutput via the nozzle 290.

To store marking information (block 560), a signal may be sent to theprocessor 268. The signal may be sent from the signal generator 310, thewireless/wired trigger 320, and/or the display 266, as described above.The signal may instruct the processor 268 to store the markinginformation. For example, the processor 268 may store the markinginformation in local memory 270. In this case, the processor 268 maycreate an entry in local memory 270. Alternatively, or additionally, theprocessor 268 may store the marking information by transmitting themarking information for storage by a device or system external tomarking tool 200.

FIG. 6A is a diagram of an exemplary entry that may be created. As shownin FIG. 6A, an entry may include a marker characteristic(s) field 610and a timestamp field 620. The marker characteristic(s) field 610 mayinclude information regarding one or more marker characteristics, suchas marker color, marker shape, or marker type. The information in themarker characteristic(s) field 610 is shown in FIG. 6A as “yellow” or“yellow paint”—although any type of descriptive information may be used.The timestamp field 620 may include time data that identifies the dayand/or time that the marker was dispensed. The time data in thetimestamp field 620 is shown in FIG. 6A as 10:45 a.m. on Oct. 20,2005—although any type of date and/or time code may be used. Asexplained above, the marking information may be useful to determinewhether the user dispensed the correct marker(s) (e.g., the correctcolor paint) in a particular location. For example, the user's ticketmay identify what utility lines were to be marked in the area. Themarking information may help insure that the job was completedcorrectly.

FIG. 6B is a diagram of another exemplary entry that may be created. Asshown in FIG. 6B, an entry may include a marker characteristic(s) field610, a timestamp field 620, and a count field 630. The markercharacteristic(s) field 610 and the timestamp field 620 may be similarto the similarly named fields in FIG. 6A. The count field 630 mayinclude information that identifies the number of times that the useractivated the trigger to dispense a marker (e.g., yellow paint). Theinformation in the count field 630 is shown in FIG. 6B astwenty-three—although any count value can be used. The information inthe count field 630 may be useful to determine or estimate an amount ofpaint that was dispensed at the location and, thus, whether the amountof paint was reasonable given the job that was to be performed.

FIG. 6C is a diagram of another exemplary entry that may be created. Asshown in FIG. 6C, an entry may include a marker characteristic(s) field640, a timestamp field 620, and an elapsed time field 650. The markercharacteristic(s) field 640 and the timestamp field 620 may be similarto the similarly named fields in FIG. 6A. In this case, however, themarker characteristic(s) field 640 may additionally store an identifierthat identifies a particular marker (e.g., a particular canister ofpaint). The identifier is shown in FIG. 6C as “12345”—although any typeof identifier may be used.

The elapsed time field 650 may include information that identifies theamount of time that has elapsed from when the user activated the triggerfor dispensing a marker (e.g., yellow paint) to when the user ceasedactivating the trigger. The information in the elapsed time field 650 isshown in FIG. 6C as three minutes, forty five seconds, and three onehundredths of a second—although any time code can be used. Theinformation in the elapsed time field 650 may be useful to determine orestimate when a supply of markers is nearly empty. The information inthe elapsed time field 650 may help determine when to replace thecanister. The elapsed time or a signal indicating that a supply ofmarkers needs to be replaced may be presented to the user visuallyand/or audibly. The information in the elapsed time field 650 may also,or alternatively, be useful to determine or estimate an amount ofmarkers used in a particular location.

While three exemplary entries have been described with regard to FIGS.6A-6C, an entry may include more, fewer, different, or combinations ofthe fields shown in FIGS. 6A-6C.

The foregoing description is not intended to be exhaustive or to limitthe description to the precise form disclosed. Modifications andvariations are possible in light of the above disclosure or may beacquired from practice of the invention.

For example, the processors 140 and 268 can be general purposecomputers. Alternatively, they can be special purpose computers,programmed microprocessors or microcontrollers and peripheral integratedcircuit elements, ASICs or other integrated circuits, hardwiredelectronic or logic circuits such as discrete element circuits,programmable logic devices such as FPGA, PLD, PLA or PAL or the like. Ingeneral, any device capable of executing code can be used to implementprocessors 140 and 268. Local memories 130 and 270 can be implementedwith any type of electronic memory and/or storage device using any typeof media, such as magnetic, optical or other media.

Further, while a series of blocks have been illustrated in FIG. 5, theorder of the blocks may differ in other implementations. Also,non-dependent blocks may be performed in parallel.

Also, it has been described that information regarding an elapsed timecan be used to determine or estimate when a supply of markers is nearlyempty. In another implementation, a sensor may be used to detect aweight of a paint canister 284. The sensor may be placed on the paintcanister 284 or within the paint canister holder 282. The weight of thepaint canister 284 may be used to estimate how full or empty the paintcanister 284 is. This information may be provided to an operator of themarking tool 200 visually and/or audibly. In one implementation,replacing the paint canister 284 may trigger the identification of themarker characteristic (e.g., paint color) by the tag reader 246. Thismay help reduce the overall battery life of the tag reader 246 and/orthe tag 286 by limiting the number of times that the tag reader 246 isused (e.g., only obtain the marker characteristic when the paintcanister 284 is initially loaded into paint canister holder 282).

It will be apparent that aspects, as described above, may be implementedin many different forms of software, firmware, and hardware in theimplementations illustrated in the figures. The actual software code orspecialized control hardware used to implement these aspects is notlimiting of the description provided herein. Thus, the operation andbehavior of the aspects were described without reference to the specificsoftware code—it being understood that software and control hardware canbe designed to implement the aspects based on the description herein.

No element, act, or instruction used in the present application shouldbe construed as critical or essential to the invention unless explicitlydescribed as such. Also, as used herein, the article “a” is intended toinclude one or more items. Where only one item is intended, the term“one” or similar language is used. Further, the phrase “based on” isintended to mean “based, at least in part, on” unless explicitly statedotherwise.

1. A system for electronically displaying information relating to use ofa marking system or a marking tool configured to dispense one or moremarkers to mark, on ground, pavement, or other surface, a location of anunderground utility, the system comprising: a processor to receivemarking information relating to the use of the marking system or themarking tool; and a display device communicatively coupled to theprocessor, wherein the processor uses the marking information to controlthe display device so as to visually display a dispensing of the one ormore markers on an electronic representation of an area that is markedand includes the location of the underground utility.
 2. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the marking information includes: data corresponding toone or more characteristics of the one or more markers being dispensed;a timestamp and/or elapsed time information; and/or count dataindicating a number of times that the one or more markers are dispensed.3. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor uses the markinginformation to control the display device so as to visually depict inreal time, as dispensing of the one or more markers occurs, thedispensing of the one or more markers on the electronic representationof the area that is marked and includes the location of the undergroundutility.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor uses themarking information to control the display devices so as to visuallyreconstruct, at a later time after dispensing of the one or more markersis complete, the dispensing of the one or more markers on the electronicrepresentation of the area that is marked and includes the location ofthe underground utility.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the processorreceives the marking information in response to activation of atriggering system associated with the marking system or the markingtool.
 6. The system of claim 5, further comprising the marking system orthe marking tool, wherein the marking system or marking tool comprises:a marker dispenser to dispense the one or more markers, wherein themarker dispenser dispenses the one or more markers in response to theactivation of the triggering system.
 7. The system of claim 1, whereinthe processor electronically receives the marking information upondispensing of the one or more markers.
 8. The system of claim 1, furthercomprising the marking system or the marking tool, wherein the markingsystem or marking tool comprises: the processor; and a local memory, andwherein the processor electronically logs the marking information in thelocal memory of the marking system or the marking tool upon the use ofthe marking system or the marking tool.
 9. The system of claim 1,wherein the processor is an external device located local to or remotefrom the marking system or the marking tool, and wherein the systemfurther comprises: a communication system coupled to the processor toelectronically receive the marking information from the marking systemor the marking tool.
 10. The system of claim 1, further comprising themarking system or the marking tool, wherein the marking system or themarking tool includes the display device.
 11. The system of claim 1,further comprising a tag reader communicatively coupled to theprocessor, wherein the processor electronically receives at least someof the marking information from the tag reader.
 12. The system of claim11, wherein the tag reader is configured to read the at least some ofthe marking information from a barcode, a radio frequency identification(RFID) device, or a near field communication (NFC) device.
 13. Thesystem of claim 11, wherein the tag reader is configured to read passivetags and/or active tags.
 14. The system of claim 11, wherein the atleast some of the marking information read by the tag reader includesdata that corresponds to one or more characteristics of the one or moremarkers.
 15. The system of claim 14, wherein the one or morecharacteristics of the one or more markers include a color of the one ormore markers, a type of the one or more markers and/or a shape of theone or more markers.
 16. The system of claim 15, wherein the one or moremarkers include a paint, and wherein the one or more characteristicsinclude a color and/or a type of the paint.
 17. A system forelectronically displaying information relating to use of a markingsystem or a marking tool configured to dispense one or more markers tomark, on ground, pavement, or other surface, a location of anunderground utility, the system comprising: the marking system or themarking tool; a processor communicatively coupled to the marking systemor the marking tool to receive marking information relating to the useof the marking system or the marking tool, wherein the processorelectronically logs the marking information in response to activation ofa triggering system associated with the marking system or the markingtool; a tag reader communicatively coupled to the processor, wherein theprocessor electronically receives at least some of the markinginformation from the tag reader, the at least some of the markinginformation including data that corresponds to one or morecharacteristics of the one or more markers; and a display devicecommunicatively coupled to the processor, wherein the processor uses themarking information to control the display device so as to visuallydisplay a dispensing of the one or more markers on an electronicrepresentation of an area that is marked and includes the location ofthe underground utility.
 18. A method for electronically displayinginformation relating to use of a marking system or a marking toolconfigured to dispense one or more markers to mark, on ground, pavement,or other surface, a location of an underground utility, the methodcomprising: A) electronically receiving marking information relating tothe use of the marking system or the marking tool; and B) using themarking information to visually display, on a display device, adispensing of the one or more markers on an electronic representation ofan area that is marked and includes the location of the undergroundutility.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein the marking informationincludes: data corresponding to one or more characteristics of the oneor more markers being dispensed; a timestamp and/or elapsed timeinformation; and/or count data indicating a number of times that the oneor more markers are dispensed.
 20. The method of claim 18, wherein B)comprises: B) using the marking information to visually depict in realtime, as dispensing of the one or more markers occurs, the dispensing ofthe one or more markers on the electronic representation of the areathat includes the location of the underground utility.
 21. The method ofclaim 18, wherein B) comprises: B) using the marking information tovisually reconstruct, at a later time after dispensing of the one ormore markers is complete, the dispensing of the one or more markers onthe electronic representation of the area that includes the location ofthe underground utility.
 22. The method of claim 18, further comprising:C) activating a triggering system associated with the marking system orthe marking tool to electronically log the marking information receivedin A).
 23. The method of claim 22, wherein C) comprises: activating thetriggering system to electronically log the marking information anddispense the one or more markers.
 24. The method of claim 18, wherein A)comprises: electronically logging the marking information upondispensing of the one or more markers.
 25. The method of claim 18,wherein A) comprises: electronically receiving the marking informationat one or more external devices located local to or remote from themarking system or the marking tool.
 26. The method of claim 18, whereinA) comprises: electronically logging the marking information in localmemory of the marking system or the marking tool.
 27. The method ofclaim 18, wherein A) comprises: A1) electronically logging at least someof the marking information; and prior to A1), receiving the at leastsome of the marking information from a tag reader.
 28. The method ofclaim 27, wherein the at least some of the marking information includesdata that corresponds to one or more characteristics of the one or moremarkers, and wherein the one or more characteristics include a color ofthe one or more markers, a type of the one or more markers, and/or ashape of the one or more markers.
 29. The method of claim 18, whereinthe marking system or the marking tool includes the display device. 30.A method for electronically displaying information relating to use of amarking system or a marking tool configured to dispense one or moremarkers to mark, on ground, pavement, or other surface, a location of anunderground utility, the method comprising: A) dispensing the one ormore markers so as to mark the location of the underground utility; B)electronically logging marking information in connection with A); and C)using the marking information to visually display the dispensing of theone or more markers in A) on an electronic representation of an areathat is marked and includes the location of the underground utility. 31.At least one computer-readable storage medium encoded with instructionsthat, when executed by a processor in a computer, perform a method forelectronically displaying information relating to use of a markingsystem or a marking tool configured to dispense one or more markers tomark, on ground, pavement, or other surface, a location of anunderground utility, the method comprising: A) electronically receivingmarking information relating to the use of the marking system or themarking tool; and B) using the marking information to visually display,on a display device, a dispensing of the one or more markers on anelectronic representation of an area that is marked and includes thelocation of the underground utility.